Who will lead Burkina Faso?

The same chief since 1987

WHEN Blaise Compaore, the president of Burkina Faso, selected a location for his palace, he chose Ouaga 2000, a district about 10km from downtown Ouagadougou, the capital. Opened in 2005, Kosyam Palace stands alone at the end of an empty avenue--a symbol of the president's isolation.

The 63-years-old is apparently used to loneliness. His political alliances tend not to last. In the years after coming to power in a 1983 coup, he prosecuted his fellow putschists. Many of them died. By 1987 he was in sole charge. Now it may be his turn to be abandoned ahead of elections in 2015. Or not.

Technically, Mr Compaore can't run. He himself introduced term limits into the constitution. But in December 2013, following national day celebrations, he suggested that the constitution could be changed. This was not greeted with universal applause.

The president had already antagonised many by trying to reshape the legislature to give himself more control. Rumours suggest he would like his brother Francois to head a new senate.

In January 2014, three of his closest allies resigned: the national assembly president, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, the Ouagadougou mayor, Simon Compaoré, and the vice-president of the ruling Congress for Democracy and Progress, Salif Diallo. The three walked out alongside 72 members of the CDP political office, made common cause with several opposition groups and launched a new party, the People’s Movement for Progress (MPP), which recently held its first national convention.

Around the same time, the president faced a second break-away. The Laarlé Naaba, a powerful repreesentative of the Morgho Naaba, the king of the Mossi ethnic group which makes up almost 40% of the population. also known as Victor Tiendrébréogo, also left the CDP in January 2014. He still considers Mr Compaore a friend but says the president does not listen anymore, and that his renewed candidacy would create division and violence. Other traditional chiefs are said to share his views.

Voters too are tired of their long-serving leader. In his old Mercedes taxi, Felix Kabore says he likes the president but the country is tired of corruption and nepotism. He says the country needs change. Since 2011, Mr Compaore has faced several public protests as well as mutinies, including one from his own guards.